How Can E-Com Stores Use Social Media To Get More Traffic?

This article was updated on August 6th, 2020 at 05:57 am

Do you run an e-commerce business? Then you are aware that the ultimate challenge is to stand apart from the hundreds of other e-commerce websites reaching out to the same audience.

Social media has become synonymous with e-commerce these days. Studies show that a massive 93 percent of consumers use social media to get suggestions for purchasing. So, social media is the most important factor if you want to compete online.

But, not all social media networks might suit your type of e-commerce website. Take a look at Social Media 101 – How To Turn Your Small Business Into A Huge Enterprise to find out which type of social network can cater to your target audience and choose accordingly.

Let’s take a look at how you can attract consumers through social media:

Share The Right Content

If you are continuously going to post sales pitches then, it will benefit your rival companies the most, as this will result in a loss of interest from your followers. Keep the whole social media experience as the name suggest, social. Post only relevant and contextual content.

Make your posts interactive and let your followers give suggestions as well. Put the interest of the customer first and strike a balance between posts that aim to generate sales and the ones that aim to educate.

Add Social Sharing Buttons

It is all about how strategically you place these buttons. The ‘Like’ widget can be added to all the products on your E-commerce website. This will attract new customers. Place a share widget near the reviews of your products. Also, if you have sales or offers going on, allow your followers to share it on their networks as well.

Capture More Email Subscribers

E-mail is a great channel at your disposal to increase traffic. E-mails outperform major social networks if you are using it to full potential.

According to recent studies, 80% of people receive marketing E-mails daily. 70% of people avail the offers, coupons, and discounts which they learn through emails. People have also suggested that they are subscribing to many business newsletters because of these exclusive offers. Let’s put this into perspective:  there are too many posts on social networks like Twitter and Facebook. This can make it difficult for your tweet or post to stand out. But, people always cherish personal emails, especially if it offers value.

E-mails also can provide you with much more space to explain your offers or discounts when compared to social networks.  So, start promoting your newsletters, because the traffic you get this way is from your niche audience and are much likely to increase sales as well.

Build Relationships With Influencers

Influencers are people who have a huge fan following for your niche. What if people who have a huge fan following to back your brand? There is a good probability that your sales will spike up. If they endorse or recommend your product, it will be seen by their millions of followers. These people are like the celebrities of the Online world and partnerships with them are extremely beneficial. Instagram is an ideal platform for this kind of strategic alliance.

Start A Blog

Many in the e-commerce industry complain that they do not have a steady supply of good content. To Combat this, how about starting a blog? Look for humorous, educational and inspirational content as they are likely to engage users the most. These blog posts should have the provision to be shared on social media websites. Also, use the blog as a platform to showcase the activities of your company and CSR initiatives.

Use Hashtags

A compass guides sailors. Many islands and even continents have been discovered this way. But, how do social media users discover your content? Well, hashtags are the compasses of social media. They help the users find and organize content. It is also a shortcut to promote interaction as all they have to do is to use that hashtag. Do not clog your posts with hashtags, though. Two is the recommended number.

Keywords

Using keywords related to your topic can boost your traffic exponentially. Keywords have the ability to increase your visibility while searching, thus widening your reach. To grab more eyeballs use visual elements as well. Images and videos are proven to improve engagement of users online.

Post Your Store To Reddit

Do you know that a significant percent of the internet hangs out on Reddit? This might be because there are thousands of niche on Reddit called subreddits. You can find subreddits on most of the subjects. Example – /r/Pizza, /r/Soccer or /r/Ballet.

Make sure that your posts are brief and efficiently convey the essence of what your e-com store is about. Make it catchy rather than sale-sy – don’t sound as if you are desperately trying to sell something. For example: Who says that soccer goods are very expensive? My online store provides quality soccer products at reasonable prices.

Pay attention to the Reddiquette guide to ensure that you follow the specific guidelines. Do check the rules of your subreddit as well. This is because some subreddits does not allow promotional materials or sales pitches. But, the traffic from Reddit is always crucial because subreddits are formed based on niches and you can find subreddits that are related to your store.

Join Groups

Try to be active in different groups. Keep a tab on what is trending and what kind of topics your customers usually converse on. This way, you can explore different posts and if interesting enough share them as well. This way you will establish a good rapport with your followers.

Paid Advertising

Facebook ads, LinkedIn ads and promoted tweets have the capabilities to take your social media marketing to the next level if you have the right budget. This will help you to target accurately and boost the overall traffic of your website.

An essential ingredient in the marketing mix nowadays is Social media. Promoting your e-commerce site on social media and employing the right strategy can take your business a long way. Apply the tips above to drive more traffic and turn your followers into loyal customers, thus expanding your business horizons.